Carbon County sets 2024 certified tax rates below certified levels, citing drop in centrally assessed value

Carbon County commissioners reviewed certified tax rates on June 19 and voted to set the county’s levies below the certified rates after staff and commissioners said a recent drop in centrally assessed value shifted tax burden onto local homeowners and businesses.

Seth, a county staff member, explained the certified tax rate process and presented four levies with certified-rate calculations and projected revenues. He said taking the certified rate for the municipal services levy would be 0.002026 and produce $2,584,961; the commission discussed instead setting a municipal levy of 0.001994 to produce $2,544,132, a reduction of approximately $40,000 in revenue for that levy.

For the county general levy, Seth presented a certified rate of 0.002410 that would yield $5,449,180; commissioners agreed to set the general levy at 0.002379, yielding $5,379,087 (about $70,000 less than certified). Seth also listed other levies including a health levy ($262,284 revenue), a state-assessed multi-county levy (0.000015 producing $35,218) and a county assessing/collecting levy (0.000398 producing $935,638).

Commission discussion emphasized that central assessment losses (noted as roughly $100,000,000 in valuation loss) have shifted tax burden onto local property owners and motivated the commission to take a lower rate this year. One commissioner said the commission’s intent is to return new-growth revenue to taxpayers as values recover.

A commissioner moved to set the rates (general 0.002379; health 0.000116; multi‑county 0.000015; assessing/collecting 0.000398; municipal 0.0019941), a second was recorded and the motion carried by voice vote.

The rates adopted at the meeting will be used in certified tax-rate filings required by state code; the decision reduces 2024 county revenue relative to the certified-rate maximums and is intended to ease taxpayer burden in the short term.